29 Nov 2024
All sides in House of Commons today (29 November) back vet and MP Danny Chambers’ private members bill at second reading – with Government listing potential restrictions.
Paul Imrie
Job Title
Liberal Democrat MP and vet Danny Chambers.
A Government minister today (29 November) outlined measures to tackle illegal pet smuggling by closing loopholes to restrict movements of dogs, cats and ferrets.
Mary Creagh, parliamentary under-secretary of state for environment, food and rural affairs, told the House of Commons the Government was committed to clamping down on “deceitful pet sellers that prioritise profit over welfare”.
She said she looked forward to working with Liberal Democrat MP and vet Danny Chambers on future legislation, as he proposed the second reading of the Animal Welfare (Import of Dogs, Cats and Ferrets) Bill, which he had put forward as a private member’s bill.
Measures outlined today that could become law include reducing the number of pets that can be brought in to Great Britain from the present five per person to five per car, and three for foot and air passengers. The movement of heavily pregnant and mutilated pets would also be restricted, and the minimum age at which kittens and puppies could be brought in raised to six months.
Proposing the second reading of the bill – which was shortly after moved through unanimously – Dr Chambers said: “We know there’s tens of thousands of puppies illegally smuggled into the UK every year. It is a huge animal welfare problem.
“And this bill will help close the issue of having mutilations in dogs. As a veterinary surgeon, we see many dogs that have got cropped ears, we’ve got docked tails – this is illegal to perform in the UK, and we know people are performing it in the UK and then claiming that the puppies have been brought in from abroad.
“If we ban puppies coming in from abroad with these mutilations, it will be a huge benefit to animal welfare.”
Fellow vet, Conservative MP and shadow parliamentary under-secretary for environment, food and rural affairs Neil Hudson, said the opposition “strongly supports this bill in the interests of animal health and welfare”.
Addressing MPs, who had moments earlier voted in the assisted dying debate, Ms Creagh said: “I am delighted to announce the Government will be fully supporting the Animal Welfare Bill through parliament.
“We stand ready to work with the honourable gentleman to clamp down on deceitful pet sellers that prioritise profit over welfare.
“This bill will crack down on pet smuggling by closing loopholes in the current pet travel rules. At present, illegal importers of dogs, cats and ferrets often exploit loopholes to bring in animals under the guise of genuine owners travelling with their pets.
“This bill will close these loopholes by reducing the number of dogs, cats and ferrets that are permitted to be brought into Great Britain by a person under the pet travel rules.”
The BVA had earlier called for vets to lobby their individual MPs to ensure the bill progressed through the House of Commons to become legislation, and in his address Dr Chambers thanked charities including the Dogs Trust and RSPCA, as well as the BVA, for supporting his private member’s bill.
